GNI issues principles and guidelines to companies for responding to government requests in a way that protects free speech and privacy, and The Hill’s Hillicon Valley blog reported that Facebook observed the group for one year before formally agreeing to join.

Advancing human rights, including freedom of expression and the right to communicate freely, is core to our mission of making the world more open and connected. We’re pleased to join GNI and contribute to its efforts to shed a spotlight on government practices that threaten the economic, social, and political benefits the Internet provides.

And GNI Executive Director Susan Morgan added:

We welcome Facebook as a full member of GNI and look forward to working more closely with them to advance the freedom of expression and privacy rights of Internet users worldwide. Adding the power of Facebook’s community of 1 billion global users puts GNI in an even better place to press governments to fulfill their obligations to protect rights online.